http://www.jewishworldreview.com --
FORTUNATELY, for the state of New York, Hillary Clinton's
political instincts don't match her reputed intellect. If she
continues to blunder, that state (and the nation) may be
spared her elevation to the Senate.

Hillary's repeated mistakes expose her as a brazen
opportunist concerned not with New York but with finally
building her own resume in the twilight of her productive
years.

When the First Lady was preaching from her White
House soapbox, she advocated the creation of a
Palestinian state. Never mind that this gratuitous policy
pronouncement was at variance with the First Husband's
official position concerning Israel.

But shortly after launching her unannounced Senate
campaign, she immediately reversed herself by declaring
Jerusalem "the eternal and indivisible capital of Israel." In
this transparent move to pander to the N.Y. Jewish
constituency, she didn't even bother to acknowledge,
much less reconcile, her prior inconsistent statement.

Then the Terrorist-Pardoner in Chief granted clemency
to 16 Puerto Rican terrorists over the vehement
objections of all law enforcement agencies and the
emphatic condemnation of both houses of Congress.
Such an outrageous abuse of presidential authority cannot
reasonably be explained, apart from Bill's effort to
enhance his wife's standing with the N.Y. Hispanic
voters.

Hillary, it should be noted, publicly supported her
husband's decision to pardon the unrepentant anarchists.
But as soon as it became apparent that the move had
backfired, Hillary switched gears again.

She made a public statement asking the president to
withdraw his offer of clemency -- instead of just going
into the other room and talking it over with him. That is, if
you believe their insulting joint denial that they had
colluded on the matter. With her about-face she not only
alienated N.Y. Puerto Ricans, but also seriously offended
certain N.Y. leaders by failing to consult with them
before announcing her turnaround. N.Y. Rep. Jose
Serrano said that another such misstep could be fatal for
Hillary's campaign.

Hillary is also coming under fire from Democrats for
relying exclusively on her small cadre of advisors and
ignoring the leadership of the party structure. Said N.Y.
Congressman Charles Rangel, "Nobody is so good they
can make decisions by relying on one or two people and
without communication with the leadership of the party."

Being an equal-opportunity offender, Mrs. Clinton has
also managed to alienate the N.Y. African-American
community. It seems that she has been unwilling to make
herself available for a meeting with black community
leaders of New York City.

In addition to her policy gaffes, the Clinton's home
purchase in Chappaqua with the support of Democratic
fund-raiser Terry McAuliffe, has drawn Hillary heavy
fire on ethical grounds. And her flagrant abuse of public
funds to subsidize campaign air travel convinced 46
Democrats to join 215 Republicans in voting to make her
fully reimburse those expenditures.

The all-knowing Mrs. Clinton even unwittingly provided
some comic relief this week by demonstrating her
intimate concern for NYC's mosquito problem. She was
responding to a question about lobbying her husband for
federal funds for the city's mosquito-killing campaign. "I
have been concerned about malaria for many years," said
Hillary, revealing that she was painfully unaware that
encephalitis, not malaria, is the problem.

Let's also not forget Hillary's foray into psychoanalysis
when she blamed her husband's serial philandering on his
being whipsawed between two battle-axes in his
formative years.

Finally, in her Senate campaign, Mrs. Clinton is in the
process of resurrecting the issue that led to the
plummeting of her approval ratings in the past, universal
health care. Happily for Republicans, Hillary subordinates
even her political opportunism to her uncompromising
socialistic passions.

So what's the net result of all this? A Wall Street
Journal/NBC News poll shows that 40 percent of
Americans now have a negative view of Hillary, up from
25 percent at the start of the year.

Hillary should have listened to those of us who tried to tell
her that she could only remain popular if she clings to her
victim-status. When she delves into the policy-arena,
whether from her Pennsylvania Avenue pulpit or as a
senatorial candidate, she forfeits all sympathy lavishly
bestowed on her by an anachronistic press still
romanticizing the virtues of Marxism.

Exit this campaign Hillary, while your First Victimhood is
still salvageable. Go
Rudy!

JWR contributor
David Limbaugh
is an
attorney
practicing in
Cape Girardeau,
Missouri,
and a
political
analyst
and
commentator. Send your comments to him by clicking here.